Why 90% of Pickleball Players Can't Get Spin
Summary
TLDRIn this informative video, the focus is on mastering different spins in pickleball: Top Spin, Slice, and Side Spin. The host explains the effects of each spin on the ball's trajectory and provides techniques for executing them effectively. Top Spin is ideal for aggressive play, causing the ball to drop quickly and bounce sharply, while Slice is used for defense, allowing for more control and accuracy. Side Spin, introduced as a tricky change-up, can make the ball curve or jump sideways. The video also offers practical tips on when to use each spin and how to practice them for improved gameplay.
Takeaways
- 🎾 Top Spin and Side Spin are critical techniques in pickleball that can greatly affect the ball's trajectory and bounce.
- 🏆 Mastering Top Spin allows for harder hits without the ball going long, and makes the ball drop quicker and bounce more aggressively.
- 🔄 Side Spin, or the 'screw ball', makes the ball curve in the air and bounce sideways, confusing opponents and adding a tricky element to the game.
- 🤸♀️ Proper technique is essential for achieving these spins; players often fail at Top Spin due to opening the face of their paddle during the brush.
- 👉 The 'brush' technique involves an upward motion where the paddle rides up the back of the ball, key for generating Top Spin.
- 💡 Practicing serves is an effective way to develop Top Spin as it exaggerates the brushing motion and helps find the right balance.
- 🛑 Avoid 'chopping' when hitting Slice; instead, use a gentle under-cut motion for better control and accuracy.
- 🔄 There are two types of Slice: one for soft shots like drops and dinks, and another for harder shots like returns, which generates more spin.
- 🎯 Top Spin is generally used when being aggressive and having enough time to prepare, while Slice is used defensively when off-balance or under pressure.
- 🌀 Side Spin can be a surprising change-up in your game, making it an effective tool to keep opponents guessing.
- 👥 Playing with a partner or using training aids like the 'dink master' can provide immediate feedback and help refine your spinning techniques.
Q & A
What are the two main types of spins in pickleball and how do they affect the ball's trajectory?
-The two main types of spins in pickleball are Top Spin and Slice. Top Spin causes the ball to drop quicker and bounce off more aggressively, making it difficult for the opponent to predict and return. Slice, on the other hand, allows the ball to float in the air slightly longer, providing more control and accuracy, which is useful when playing defensively.
Why do players struggle to get Top Spin and what is the critical mistake they make with their technique?
-Players often struggle with Top Spin because they open the face of their paddle during the brush, which leads to lifting with the bottom edge of the paddle. To achieve Top Spin, it's important to maintain a flat face and brush up the back of the ball without cupping it open.
How can a player practice and improve their Top Spin technique?
-To practice and improve Top Spin, players should start by hitting serves as it allows for repetition and exaggeration of the brushing motion. Serving is a great way to find the right balance of forward movement and upward motion necessary for generating Top Spin.
What is Side Spin and how does it differ from Top Spin and Slice?
-Side Spin makes the ball curve in the air and sometimes jump to the side after bouncing. It's different from Top Spin and Slice as it's not primarily focused on the ball's vertical movement but rather its lateral or side-to-side movement, which can confuse opponents and make returns more challenging.
How can a player use Side Spin to their advantage in a game?
-A player can use Side Spin to their advantage by incorporating it into their serves, returns, and volleys. The screw ball serve and return, which involve Side Spin, can curve the ball and make it tricky for opponents. Additionally, a side spin can be applied to a roll volley, especially on low balls, to make the bounce more challenging for the opponent.
What are the key times to use Top Spin in a pickleball game?
-Key times to use Top Spin include when serving, on third shot drives for added power and control, on volleys for a challenging return, and on drops and dinks for a difficult bounce. Top Spin is the aggressive spin and should be used when the player has enough time to prepare for the shot.
When should a player opt for Slice over Top Spin?
-A player should opt for Slice when they are off-balance or have less time to prepare for the shot. Slice is the defensive spin and is ideal for maximizing consistency, especially when returning a hard shot or when the player is in a defensive position at the back of the court.
What are the two different types of Slice and when are they used?
-The two types of Slice are the softer slice used on drops or dinks for control and the harder slice used on returns or harder shots like chips for more power and spin. The softer slice is used when accuracy is key, while the harder slice is used when the player needs to generate more spin and power.
How does the brushing motion contribute to generating Top Spin?
-The brushing motion involves an upward movement where the player rides up the back of the ball. This motion is crucial for generating Top Spin as it causes the ball to spin away from the player, resulting in a quicker drop and a more aggressive bounce off.
What is the recommended way to practice getting the feel for Side Spin?
-To practice Side Spin, players can focus on their serves and returns, particularly the screw ball serve and return. Additionally, during volleys, especially on low balls, players can practice dropping their wrist and making contact from a lower angle to generate a subtle Side Spin that affects the ball's bounce.
How can a player know if they are getting a good amount of Top Spin on their shots?
-A player can know if they are getting a good amount of Top Spin by observing if the ball pops up after being hit. This upward movement of the ball indicates that the brushing motion is being executed correctly and that the ball is spinning away from the player, resulting in Top Spin.
Outlines
🏓 Understanding Spin in Pickleball
This paragraph introduces the concept of spin in pickleball, emphasizing the importance of mastering Top Spin and Slice. It explains how Top Spin causes the ball to drop quicker and bounce away more, making it harder for the opponent. The speaker also mentions the challenges players face in getting the hang of these spins and introduces the topic of different types of spins, including Side Spin, which will be covered later in the video.
🚀 Developing Top Spin Technique
The speaker delves into the specifics of generating Top Spin, explaining the 'brush' technique as an upward motion that is applied to various strokes. They highlight the common mistake of opening the paddle face during the brush, which prevents successful Top Spin. The paragraph also discusses the importance of being below the ball before impact and above it after, to generate the desired spin. The speaker shares tips on practicing Top Spin, starting with serves and gradually moving to other shots, and emphasizes the benefits of Top Spin in various game situations.
🎾 Mastering the Slice and Side Spin
This paragraph focuses on the Slice spin, which is the opposite of Top Spin, causing the ball to float longer in the air and providing more accuracy and consistency. The speaker clarifies that Slice is generally used when defending or when the player is off-balance. They also introduce two types of Slice: one for soft shots like drops or dinks, and another for harder shots like returns. The paragraph further explains when to use each type of spin based on the game situation and the strategic advantage it provides.
💡 The Art of Side Spin
The final paragraph discusses Side Spin, a tricky change-up in pickleball. It outlines two main ways to use Side Spin: the screw ball, which involves cutting to the side, and a unique type of Side Spin used on low roll volleys. The speaker explains the Continental grip required for the screw ball and the benefits of using this spin to curve the ball in the air and make returns more challenging for the opponent. They also touch on the use of Side Spin in roll volleys to make the bounce more unpredictable, adding an extra layer of difficulty for the opponent.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Top Spin
💡Side Spin
💡Slice
💡Brush
💡Dink
💡Drive
💡Volley
💡Serve
💡Paddle Technique
💡Practice
Highlights
The importance of mastering Top Spin and Side Spin in pickleball and the common struggle players face in achieving these spins.
The physics behind Top Spin causing the ball to drop quicker and jet off more after bouncing.
How to use Top Spin effectively in different game scenarios such as dinking, driving, serving, and volleying.
The technique for generating Top Spin, emphasizing the brush motion without opening the paddle face.
Practical tips for practicing Top Spin, including starting with serves to get the right balance of forward movement and upward brush.
The difference between Top Spin and Slice, with Top Spin being aggressive and Slice being defensive.
The two types of Slice and when to use each for optimal accuracy and control.
The critical mistake of chopping the ball when attempting Slice, which leads to loss of control.
How to implement Top Spin and Slice in your game at various stages, from serving to dinking.
The use of Side Spin and its applications, including the screw ball and its effect on the ball's trajectory.
The Continental grip and ball toss technique required for executing the screw ball.
The unique application of Side Spin on a roll volley to make the ball bounce oddly to the side.
The strategic use of Side Spin to confuse opponents and make their next shot more difficult.
The importance of not being predictable with Top Spin and Slice, and incorporating Side Spin as a tricky change-up.
The detailed breakdown of how to hit a Top Spin drive and the benefits it provides against opponents at the net.
The technique for a Top Spin drop and its effectiveness in making the opponent's return challenging.
The strategic approach to using Slice when on defense and the advantage it provides at the 3.0 to 4.0 skill level.
The full court demonstration of the screw ball return and its impact on the opponent's third shot.
The practical advice on when to use each spin based on the player's position and the game situation.
Transcripts
every time you hit the pickle ball you
should be aiming to get Top Spin slice
or side spin the problem with that is
that getting the hang of using these
spins without missing can be extremely
difficult so today I'm going to take you
through why players struggle to get Spin
and how you could learn it and use it in
your own game helping me today I have my
sister
Kennedy before I get into how to hit the
spins though I want to go over each spin
specifically and what they do so when
you use each spin it has a different
effect effect on how the ball flies
through the air so the first spin that
we're going to cover is Top Spin which
is where the ball is essentially
spinning away from you as if the ball is
rolling away from you so it has that
forward rotation and when you hit Top
Spin what happens is two things first
thing is that the ball drops quicker so
because of the physics of what's
happening when the ball's spinning away
from you it makes it fall faster so it's
almost like there's more gravity it
sucks the ball down giving you the
ability to hit harder without sailing
the ball long the second thing that
happens is when the ball bounces it Jets
off more just because the ball's
spinning away from you so when it
bounces it sort of Springs towards your
opponent which can make things super
tricky so sobriety of different ways you
can use Top Spin which I'm going to go
over right now we're just dinking but
one thing to keep in mind is that most
players can't hit Top Spin because
they're making one critical air with
their technique I'm going to cover that
too and if you're the kind of player
that doesn't doesn't really necessarily
get the most Top Spin on their shots
wait for the technique section cuz we're
going to go super deep into it the next
type of spin that you need to learn is
slice or under spin as people call it
and what all that is is the exact
opposite of Top Spin so when you're
hitting slice the ball is spinning
toward you it looks like we're dinking
is this so we're coming under the ball
to make the ball spin towards you and
when you do that what happens is it's
the exact opposite of Top Spin the ball
actually floats in the air a little bit
longer and you might be kind of confused
this to why you do that which I'll go
over later but pretty much slicing is
generally when you're going for more
accuracy and consistency and I'll
explain how you switch between Top Spin
and slice too but generally this is what
slice looks like another thing though
that players don't know is that there's
two different types of slice so right
now we're doing one type of slice later
I'm going to show you the other type of
slice when we get into the technique
section but know that slice and Top Spin
are the two most fundamental spins that
you should be going for on every single
shot the last spin I'm going to talk
about is Sid Spin and there's a few
different ways you can use Sid spin but
pretty much what Sid spin does is it
makes the ball curve in the air and
sometimes it makes it jump to the side
off the bounce so you see if I hit Sid
spin here the bounce sort of goes off
that way right and if I hit it like this
it sort of makes the ball curve so I'm
going to go over that at the end of the
video now guys I'm going to get into the
specifics of how to generate Top Spin
before I get into that though if you're
in the process of learning pickle ball
make sure to subscribe we make a new
video every every week that's designed
to make you improve so if you're trying
to make that happen make sure to
subscribe so to get Top Spin all you
need to do is What's called the brush so
what the brush is is an upward motion
where you ride up the back of the ball
and this applies to any stroke whether
it be a dink a drive a serve so all
we're doing we're hitting these dinks to
get Top Spin is going up the back of the
ball so that the ball spins away from us
so one critical mistake that players
make is when they're doing the brush
they open the face of their paddle so
what you don't want to happen when
you're doing the brush is you don't want
your paddle to cup open so this is why
most players can't hit Top Spin it's CU
what they do is they go up but they lift
with the bottom edge of the paddle which
makes the ball go up so in order to get
the Top Spin what I want to do is go up
as my paddle is going forward obviously
see cuz I need to hit the ball but I
want to go up with a pretty flat face so
my face of my paddle is pretty much
perpendicular to the ground and when I
go up like that it might open up a
little bit but because it's
perpendicular to the ground it spins the
ball away from me and to make the brush
happen you need to make sure before you
hit the ball you're below it and after
it you're above it right so when you're
taking your paddle back you need to keep
that in mind that you should be going
towards your ball at a lower angle angle
so you see when I hit these drives I'm a
little bit below the ball and then I end
it a little bit above the ball and
that's how I generate Top Spin so you
see the way I do it on this shot's
different than my dink but the idea is
the same I'm riding up the back of the
ball as I'm moving my paddle forward and
that's what generates the spin when it
comes to back hands getting Top Spin is
definitely a lot harder but regardless
of whether you have a one-hander or a
two-hander you can still do it I have a
two-hander so the one-hander is not my
most natural but all I'm doing to get
Top Spin is riding up the back of the
ball and you can see I'm getting a lot
of spin when I'm doing that so it's just
the same exact brushing motion coming up
the back of the ball and of course to
get this down to where you can actually
use it in a game you need to do a lot of
practice my favorite way to start off
practicing tops spin is to just hit
serves so me and Kennedy both played
college tennis so to us getting Top Spin
came very naturally but if you didn't
play tennis or you're just getting
started get Topson with the pigle ball
paddle might not be natural so the way
that you get used to it and used to
trying is with repetition so with my
serve I can really exaggerate how much
Topson I'm trying to get and I can get
used to getting the right level so when
you're doing the brush it's really easy
to do too much but if you go straight up
and down with your paddle the ball
doesn't go anywhere so by practicing
with a serve you can get the right
balance of forward movement and drive
with your shoulder
an upward and downward motion to get the
brush so when I'm hitting a serve the
trajectory of my paddle actually looks
more like this so I'm not going straight
up and down I'm going forward as I'm
going up so you'll
see I'm actually getting a lot of Top
Spin on that serve though so every shot
that you hit Top Spin on is a little
different when you're dinking you're
going to be going more up when you're
hitting a drive or a serve you're
sending your paddle forward more the
thing that stays constant is being below
the ball before you hit it and above
after so serving is probably the best
way to get Top Spin down on your
forehand if you haven't really gotten
the hang of it yet so you can come out
to the quarts just hit a basket of
serves and by the end of that basket if
you're trying to get tops spin over and
over again I'm sure you'll be a lot
better and more comfortable with it once
you start getting the Top Spin down
though there's a few key times that you
want to use it and the first is when
you're hitting a serve like I just was
and the reason for this is when you're
hitting Top Spin on your serve gives you
the ability to hit harder without making
the ball go long so you can really start
to get big Power and you can make it a
little bit trickier too off the bounce
because the ball Jets off so if you
watch any High Lev player playing
they're probably hitting most of their
serves with Top Spin like I am here so
this is probably the best place to start
off and the next place you want to start
implementing your Top Spin is on your
drive so if you get a third shot drive
and you want to go hard when you use Top
Spin you can actually make the ball dip
down a little bit at your opponent's
feet because it sucks the ball down so
you can hit really hard
while keeping that ball low and prevents
it from going long too so it's a little
bit harder to do it on a drive than on a
serve because obviously you have to move
around more and there's more variables
but if you can hit Top Spin on your
drive this is one of the best ways to
make things difficult for your opponent
at the net after you get that down I try
to implement Top Spin on your volleys so
a lot of time when your opponent hits
you a slower drop like that you can do
what's called a roll where you're coming
up from under the ball if you take that
right at your opponent's feet it jumps
into them and it makes it pretty tricky
for them to hit another drop the
technique here is a little different I'm
being a lot more risty with it so on our
drives we're using mostly arm to get Top
Spin on our roll volley we're using
mostly wrist so if you see when I hit
that shot all I do is I dip down below
the ball and I brush up the back of it
with my wrist so you can really get Top
Spin or you can really do the brush with
your wrist and with your arm and I
recommend more wrist for volleys more
arm for your ground strokes meaning from
the back of the court and more arm on
your serve the last place you can get
Top Spin is on your drops and your dinks
so if I'm hitting the ball into the
kitchen and I use Top Spin makes the
bounce a lot more difficult it also
makes the ball drop quicker so it's
actually probably the hardest type of
drop or dink for your opponents to
return but it can be pretty challenging
to be accurate because here I'm do a lot
more upward motion I'm not using any
wrist but I'm hitting the ball so soft
that it requires a lot of feel and
practice to be able to consistently make
this shot so when I'm
dinking usually I dink crosscourt when
I'm doing Top Spin when I'm doing a
crosscourt Top Spin dink I'm hitting the
ball even softer just brushing up the
back of the ball so this is probably the
last step of implementing Top Spin in
your game but if you watch Pros they're
doing Top Spin dinks and Top Spin drops
all the time so when we think about Top
Spin top spin's the best spin for being
aggressive but slice is the best spin
for maximizing your consistency and it's
the best for if you're on defense so now
we're going to go through slice before I
get into that though I want to show you
how you can practice Top Spin on the
dink master in these examples I'm
working on my brushing motion and
because the dink Master is angled upward
the ball actually pops up giving me
immediate feedback so when I see the
ball pop up I know that I'm getting a
good amount of Top Spin and on the Dig
Master you can also work on your Top
Spin roll volleys like I just showed you
like this this kind of repetition is
exactly what you need to get the hang of
generating Top Spin so if you want to
check out the dink Master make sure head
to our site so to hit slice all you need
to be doing is the opposite of what you
do with Top Spin because the spin is the
opposite so on Top Spin we're brushing
up the back of the ball with slice we're
going to be going down so essentially
we're cutting under the ball right so
when I hit Slice on a dink it looks like
this I'm bleeding with the bottom Edge
under the ball and the big mistake that
players make when they're getting slic
is they do what's called chopping so if
I was to hit the ball like
this I get a ton of slice but because
I'm moving my hand so up to down I lose
all my control and my feel so I'm
hitting slice and pickle ball I'm never
trying to get an extreme amount of slice
I'm essentially just leading under the
ball with the bottom edge of my paddle
so I'm never like chopping at it I'm
just going under it a little bit because
getting a ton of slice doesn't really do
much for us anyway so we're using that
little bit of slice for control if I'm
to try to get an extreme amount of Slice
on a dink or on any shot in pickle ball
doesn't really do anything for me and it
doesn't really make things more
difficult for my opponent so what are
the two different types of slice well
the first type of slice is what you use
on a drop or a dink where all I'm really
doing to get my slice is going under the
ball with the bottom edge of my paddle
so you see by the time that I finish
hitting that shot my paddle is pretty
much facing up because after I hit the
ball I'm sort of cupping under it so
there's no name for this type of slice
but it's the type of slice that you use
when you're hitting the ball soft so
when I'm hitting a dink I do the exact
same thing I'm just cupping under the
ball and that's the way that I get that
back Spin and the next type of slice
that You' use is when you're hitting the
ball harder and the main shot that
highle players do this on is the return
which looks like
this so there we'd call that kind of
shot a chip and I'm getting my bottom
Edge under the paddle just like I do
when I'm hitting it softly but most of
my slice is coming from a higher to
lower motion so I'm getting a lot of
power and because I'm going down it
generates a lot more spin than the first
type of slice let me show you another
example on the back hand so it's a lot
stiffer of
aemotion and you generate a lot more
spin because you're swinging so much
faster so getting the feel on the first
type of Slice versus the second type of
slice is a little bit different so
you'll need to practice both of them
separately what's important though is
that you're not trying to hit the chip
though when we're hitting our soft slice
cuz look if I try to go for that same
motion where I'm stiffer and cutting
more it becomes really hard to be
accurate so to show you again what the
slower type of slice looks like we're
really massaging the ball more and
coming under it right I'm not getting
nearly as much spin as when I chip does
have Back Spin but I'm not necessarily
cutting as hard so when it comes to Top
Spin and slice probably 95% of your
shots are going to be one of these two
spins but when I see most players play
they don't necessarily know the right
times to use them so the way that you
think about it is Top Spin is your
aggressive Spin and slice is your
defensive spin so if you ever have a
shot that you feel is easy and you have
a lot of time to prepare for you almost
always want to go for Top Spin so if
we're dinking and Kennedy's giving me a
lot of time I'm probably going to go for
my Topson dinks if she's pushing me back
though I'm going to go for my slic dinks
because when I'm doing Slice on my dinks
it's a lot easier to stay accurate I can
Arc the ball more and I'm not going up
and down which just makes things a
little bit easier to control same thing
though applies on my volley so if I have
a really slow easy volley I'm probably
going to do that roll Vol that we talked
about so I come over the ball and use
Top Spin because when I use Top Spin it
makes things more challenging and if I
have time I might as well add that on
but if Kennedy hits me a really hard
shot when I'm balling I don't
necessarily slice I just might not have
as much time to get over the ball so I
hit more of a flatter volley which is
where I don't have any spin when I'm at
the back of the court if I have an
easier shot I'm probably going to go for
a Top Spin drive or a Top Spin
drop if I'm on defense generally I'm
probably going to go for a slice drop so
you don't really ever want to go for a
slic drive if your opponent's at the net
because it sort of floats up for them
and they can kill it so a high level
player when they're on defense from the
back of the Court they go for a slice
drop so if I'm super backed up I can
kind of get out of my defensive position
by hitting the ball into the kitchen and
the easiest way to do that when I'm off
balance is with my slice drop so to
recap it doesn't apply to every single
situation but generally if you have more
time and you're being aggressive you
want to use Top Spin and if you're off
balance and have less time you want to
use slice or that Back Spin it's also
just a super effective spin to use at
the 3.0 to 4.0 level the only issue with
using Top Spin and slice all the time
though is that it can become a little
bit predictable so now I want to teach
you how to use Sid spin which can be the
ultimate tricky change up so when it
comes to side spin there's two main ways
that you can use it the first is called
the screw ball where I cut to the side
like this you can do this on the serve
and the return the second is a more
unique type of Sid spin that very few
players know so stick around if you want
to see that but on the screw ball all
we're doing is cutting to the side
making the ball rotate on a vertical
axis definitely see this more on the
serve than on the return and to make
make this happen you want to have the
Continental grip and you want to toss
the ball rather than out to the side of
your body right in the front of your
front leg so if I toss the ball from
here what happens is when I cut at it I
cut at it with pretty much the same
motion as my slice but because it's over
here my paddle is facing down it makes
the ball spin to the side now as you'll
see from a full court angle it makes the
ball curve so you see when I hit the
screw ball serve ball actually curves a
little bit which can make things super
tricky for your opponent not going to go
super deep into the screw ball serve but
if you're interested we just made a full
video on it when it comes to the screw
ball return you're essentially doing the
same thing but off of their serve so
this can definitely be a little bit
trickier to get the hang of but I've
seen a lot of Pros do this where they
cut the ball as they're going forward
makes the return curve which can make
the third shot for your opponents a
little more difficult so to show you a
full cord example of the screw ball
return all you need to do is that same
cutting motion and when the ball curves
like that it can make your opponent's
third shot super difficult I wouldn't do
this one every single time but
occasionally if you pull it out it might
confuse your opponents and make them
Miss and the other type of side spin you
can get is actually on your roll B so as
I talked about earlier on a roll volley
we drop below the ball with our wrist
and brush up with this windshield wiper
motion but what I've been seeing a lot
of Pros doing recently is if they get a
really low roll volley you can actually
drop your wrist even more make contact
with the ball right here and when you
come up from that angle you actually get
a little bit of Sid spin which can make
things tricky for your opponents if
they're trying to move forward so to
show you what that looks like if I can
get under the ball and come up to the
side a little bit like this you actually
get that ball to bounce a little bit to
the side so it doesn't do that much to
the Flight of the ball but when it
bounces it kind of jets off to the side
a little bit which can make things
tricky for your opponent if they're
trying to drop so in real time if she's
hitting me drops that are super low and
I'm having to lean over I can go for
that side spin which makes the ball
bounce a little bit weird it can make
your opponent's drops a little bit more
challenging and if you want to watch
that video I talked about where I go
over the screw ball serve watch
this
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